Worry for a friend
by 6-4 pilot
Summary: After finishing his duel with the Warden, the Orochi was rushing back to his allies, hoping that Momiji is alright. Upon finding her bathing, the two have a conversation about her worry for the Orochi when he stayed behind.
1. Chapter 1

**For some weird reason, I like all of the named Samurai characters that you are allied with. I don't know why, I just do. Same thing with Stone, the conqueror that used to be Iron Legion, Stigandr, and Cross. I just like them as well. Anyway, this story is no way, shape, or form related to Duty or Love. This is a completely different story all together.**

* * *

The Orochi was quickly sprinting away from the ruins where he fought a Warden. He needed to get back to base as soon as possible. Momiji was most likely there as well, being tended to for her wounds. He cursed himself as he remembered what happened. The two were out on a scouting mission to find a safe passage for their army so they can reach the Blackstone legion fortress without any complications. Unfortunately, during the mission, Momiji was hit in the knee by an arrow. To make matters worse, it was done while they were scouting out the newly reformed Iron Legion. So, they had to fight their way out. Momiji got out safely but the Orochi was caught by the commander. After a rage-filled battle with the Warden in charge, he raced off to report back to Ayu, hoping that Momiji was safe. As he was sprinting, he remembered the moments before he was captured.

* * *

 **Sometime ago**

* * *

The Orochi dodged a slash from a knight captain before stabbing said captain in the neck. He was about to be attacked by another knight when Momiji stabbed that knight from behind, piercing through his armor easily, killing him. While she was severely handicapped due to her led injury, she was still capable of putting up a fight albeit at a lesser degree than usual.

"These knights don't know when to give up." Said Momiji as she retracted her naginata from the corpse. "They sure are persistent." The Orochi just grunted in agreement as he slit the throat of another enemy soldier.

"I don't suppose you can limp faster?" Asked the Orochi as he looked around for more knights.

"No, this is the best I can do. I sure would like to see you try and do this." Said Momiji as she limped toward him using her naginata as a crutch. "Is the coast clear?"

"For now." Said the Orochi as the two moved ahead. As the two neared a window, a knight climbed through the opening. The Orochi, seeing this, pushed the knight out the window, causing the man to fall to his death. "At this rate, every single knight will be upon us."

"Then what do you suppose we do? Ask nicely to have them let us go?" Asked Momiji as the two neared the exit. It was guarded by a Conqueror but beyond that, they saw the bridge that will lead them out of here. It was also guarded by a group of knights. "Great. What do we do?"

"We have to fight our way out. Momiji, listen carefully. Once you made your escape, I'll stay behind and hold them off to buy you time." Said the Orochi. Momiji widened her eyes upon hearing the plan.

"Are you insane!? This place is crawling with knights. You'll be overwhelmed!" Said Momiji. While she was confident in her friend's skills, even he cannot fight so many at once.

"We have no choice. This is the best option for getting us both out of here alive." Said the Orochi, looking at Momiji. Seeing that she still looked reluctant at going ahead, the Orochi placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Momiji, I won't be far behind you. And I wouldn't do this if I wasn't sure that I can handle it. Just trust me." Momiji looked at the ground for a few moments before looking at the Orochi in the eyes.

"You better come back alive." Warned Momiji. "I didn't help you escape from jail, just for you to die by some lowly knight."

"I won't. Now stay behind me and don't do anything stupid." Said the Orochi as he drew his katana and charged at the Conqueror.

* * *

 **Present**

* * *

Within an hour, the Orochi spotted a group of Samurai led by Okuma. The group stopped upon seeing him. Okuma, upon seeing his friend, laughed as he approached his friend.

"You sure know how to make us all worry about my friend. Taking on an entire legion by yourself." Said Okuma as he shook his head. "You must be really stupid or really brave."

"Perhaps both, my friend. Though I will admit, that I wish not to do something like that again." Said the Orochi. Okuma laughed and patted his friend in the back.

"C'mon. You must have a story to tell." Said Okuma as he led the group back to where their army was making camp. As they were walking, the Orochi couldn't help but worry about Momiji.

"Okuma. Is Momiji safe?" Asked the Orochi.

"Hmm…yeah. Last time I saw her, she was being tended to for her wounds. "Said Okuma, making the Orochi sigh.

"Are her injuries permanent?" Asked the Orochi.

"No. She should be fine in a day or two." Said Okuma. With that, the Orochi nodded in relief and the rest of the trip remained silent. Eventually, the group arrived at the camp and the Orochi gave his report to Ayu. After reporting to her all he knew about the Iron legion, the commander, and what he recommended on what to do about them, he was walking around, trying to find Momiji. He wanted to speak to her about their mission and how she was. After some time of searching, he spotted Okuma. Deciding that he should ask him for directions on where Momiji is, the Orochi walked up to Okuma.

"Okuma, have you seen Momiji?" Asked the Orochi as he approached the Shugoki.

"Last time I saw her, she was walking to a lake somewhere close by." Said Okuma as he pointed to the direction. Nodding in thanks, the Orochi walked to where Okuma was pointing at. "Good luck." Said Okuma as soon as the Orochi was gone. The Orochi walked around for a while until he heard a waterfall. Thinking that he found his target, the Orochi walked to where the sound was coming from. When he got there, however, he was caught with a rather…awkward scene. He found Momiji but she was…bathing.

Her back was facing him, so she didn't know he was around. Her hair was out of it's usual bun, letting it fall back to it's real length, ending around her waist. As she was washing herself, the Orochi couldn't help but stare. He knew what he was doing was wrong but something…feral within him told him to continue watching. He honestly didn't know what it was but he wished it would go away. Otherwise, both Momiji and Ayu would punish him severely for this. But…he had to admit Momiji was beautiful to look at. Her skin was fair. She had slight curves in the right places and she had a strong but still beautiful body. He was about to cough to get her attention when she suddenly turned around. Upon seeing the Orochi, she paused a few moments before gasping and covering herself with her arms. Seeing that he was caught, the Orochi looked away. There was an awkward silence between until Momiji broke it.

"How long have you been standing there?" Asked Momiji as she looked at the Orochi, still embarrassed at being caught naked by her friend.

"Too long." Said the Orochi with a blush though it was hidden by his menpo. "I am sorry for this. It was not right of me to see you in this state."

"It's alright. Just don't let it happen again." Said Momiji as she moved back into dry land. She then walked over to the place where she put her clothes and armor at and began to put them back on. After placing the last of her armor back on, she turned to the Orochi and coughed to get his attention. He turned to face her and saw that she didn't put her Noh mask on yet. The two stared at each other for a few moments before Momiji suddenly grabbed the Orochi and hugged him, surprising him.

"Momiji?" Asked the Orochi before she tightened her hold on him.

"I was worried about you." Said Momiji. "You stayed behind to face all those knights while I ran like a coward when I should have helped you." She then looked at him with tearing brown eyes. Seeing this, the Orochi cupped her face with one of his hands as the other wiped away what tears were falling on her face. As he did so, he couldn't help but admire Momiji's beauty. He had never seen her without her mask on before as it was a custom of Nobushis' to never reveal their faces, even to those they consider as friends and even family, to anyone. The only people they ever revealed their identities to those that are within their ranks, people that they trust with their lives, and lovers. Seeing that Momiji revealed her face to him, he had to be in one of the latter two. The Orochi looked at her brown eyes as they glinted still with tears.

"It's alright, Momiji. I willingly stayed behind to give you time to escape. And I know if you hadn't suffered that arrow hit, you would have helped be fend off the knights. Besides, you wouldn't have been much help if you stayed. You would have been more of a liability than an asset then. No offense." Said the Orochi, attempting to comfort Momiji. Momiji just let go and looked away from him.

"None taken." Said Momiji. "But still, I was worried for you. You've been in prison for a long time. Your skills could have dulled with that time. Plus, there was so many knights there. There was no way you could have held them off by yourself." Said Momiji. The Orochi grunted in agreement.

"That you are right. I should be fortunate that the commander wished to keep me alive." Said the Orochi, remembering the Warden and how he said that they share a common enemy. Momiji widened her eyes at the information before embracing the Orochi again.

"Then I guess I should thank that commander for sparing you." Said the Momiji, her head on the crook of the Orochi's neck. After a few minutes of silent embrace, the Orochi pulled Momiji off him.

"Momiji. I don't blame you for anything. Please, don't blame yourself for my capture. Why are you so obsessed about this?" Asked the Orochi. Momiji looked hesitant about something before wrapping her arms around the Orochi's neck and kissed him on the mouth, though his lips were covered by his menpo, it still caused him to widen his eyes in surprise. The kiss only lasted for a few seconds when Momiji pulled back with a blush on her face.

"That's why. Ever since we met, I always admired you and respected you. You've been one of my closest friends ever since I joined up with Ayu. You've never ridiculed me, you always been supportive of me, and you had my back when we were in a fight. And I guess along the way, I grew feelings for you." Explained Momiji, turning away with a blush on her face. She then turned to the Orochi with a sad look. "All this and I left you to face so many alone. It made me feel ashamed of myself, both as a Nobushi and a person, that I left you to basically die. That's why I'm so obsessed." The Orochi, upon hearing her confession, stayed silent before pulling down his menpo, grabbing her, and kissing her again. She gasped when their lips touched before she closed her eyes and kissed back. The kiss lasted longer than the last one but was still short. Once the two stopped kissing, the Orochi looked at Momiji with a smirk.

"Are you done moping around? Because I'm sure that I want the real Momiji back." Said the Orochi as he placed his menpo back on, making Momiji giggle.

"Oh, she's back alright. And she's staying. Though she would like us to continue talking in private." Said Momiji before placing her Noh mask on and grabbing her naginata. "But it would have to be later, we have to get back now. Otherwise Ayu would send someone to look for us." The Orochi nodded in agreement. The two then proceeded to walk back to camp. As they were walking, Momiji began to speak.

"You want to keep the fact that you spied on me bathing a secret?" Asked Momiji.

"Yes, please." Said the Orochi, not wanting to deal with Ayu or any other female in the army about his accidental peeping.

"Okay. But only on two conditions." Said Momiji. The Orochi looked at her, hoping that she wasn't going to do anything ridiculous. "First. You have take me out on a date after all this with the knights is over." Said Momiji. The Orochi nodded in agreement. It was relatively acceptable and reasonable. Now the second one is what he was worried about. "The second one is…holding my hand while we walk back to camp." With that she held her hand out. The Orochi looked at her incredulously before sighing and taking her hand. "What's wrong? Never held a woman's hand before?" Teased Momiji as the two walked back to camp.

"No. Just not one as beautiful as you." Said the Orochi. Momiji just laughed at him as the two walked back to camp with their hands still together.


	2. Chapter 2

**I decided to post another chapter for this story.**

 **MkDemigodZ-Warrior- No, this will be the last chapter for this story. I should have mentioned that before.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

* * *

Back at Koto, the Dawn Empire's capital, the citizens of the empire were back doing their everyday lives. Trading or working to help feed their families. But, within this sense of peace, lies a sense of danger and paranoia. As if the people were expecting to be attacked by Vikings or knights, something that did happen just a few short months ago. Since then, the Samurai, having learned from their mistakes, updated and reinforced the defenses for the city. Walls were being reinforced, constant patrols were being made, and a larger garrison was added to the defenses. Within a few more months, the city will be better defended than ever before. Meanwhile at the bridge that allowed passage to the city, Momiji was humming to herself as she saw both citizens and soldiers of the Dawn Empire working on building a new gate for the city. The original gate, along with everything else about the defenses for the bridge, were determined to be inadequate for the city and so, Ayu decided to put funding on upgrading and replacing the meager defenses. The new gate was built out of metal and had various locks in place to prevent someone from knocking it down. There were also several guards post and turrets being built to help defend the bridge.

Momiji had to say, she was impressed with all the new things happening to both the bridge and the city. While she wasn't born in the city, having been born in a village somewhere in the Myre, she was still eager to defend Koto with everything she had. The old defense was too, in her opinion, too outdated to be of any use today, which was proven true when the Viking raided their capital. A very embarrassing thing for the Samurai. Now, after dozens of years, the Samurai have finally got off their lazy hides and begun to take the defense of their lands seriously. And Momiji was assigned to help defends the workers while the finished rebuilding and retrofitting the bridge. It was an assignment that was boring in her eyes.

All she really did was babysitting the workers until they finished their jobs. She rarely, if ever, went into action. The chances of either the Vikings or knights coming to assault the capital were slim to none. They were far too busy taking lands, defending their lands, and retaking lands. Plus, the fronts were miles away from here. So, all the action she ever got was saving a worker or two from falling due to a mistake. To help compensate for this, she made small-talk with some of the other soldiers and even the workers when they were on break. Most welcomed it with open-arms, while others, particularly the other soldiers, didn't. She did get along with her fellow Nobushi though. Sometimes they would converse about what they heard from the frontlines, how boring this assignment was, etc. Right now, she was conversing with another Nobushi right now.

"How long will we be here?" Asked the other Nobushi as the two saw several workers installing a new turret in one of the new guard towers.

"Too long." Said Momiji, twirling her Naginata out of boredom. The other Nobushi groaned at this.

"So, what do you plan to do after this is all over?" Asked the Nobushi. Momiji just hummed to herself, deep in thought at what to do. She thought about visiting her family. She missed them terribly. She was relieved that the village they were in wasn't anywhere near the frontlines and that it was of little strategic value to anyone. She was considering on visiting her family when another thought crossed her mind. What about the date the Orochi promised to take her on? Truth be told, she almost forgot about that. With all the work and fighting caused by the new war between the factions, the two agreed to postpone the date. She had been so caught up with fighting, watching over people, and be a guard for Ayu, that she had completely forgot about the date. She wondered if now, was a good time to do so. It's not as if they'll be attacked anytime soon. Plus, what was the harm in one of the guards being missing. She then smiled deviously behind her mask, a plan forming in her head.

"Hey, can you do me a favor?" Asked Momiji to the other Nobushi, who looked at her, interested. "Can you cover for me? It'll only take several hours." The Nobushi rose an eyebrow, though it was hidden behind her mask, before replying.

"What for? Meeting someone special?" Teased the Nobushi.

"You could say that." Said Momiji, a Cheshire like grin on her face. "So, will you, do it?" The Nobushi pretended to think before giving her answer.

"Why not? It's better than doing nothing but guarding these guys." The Nobushi waved her hand to the workers. "Just remember you owe me after this." Momiji just chuckled before quietly taking off to the city. It wasn't too difficult. All she had to do was tell the guards that she was on break and that she'll come back later. They took the bait and allowed her to pass. As she was walking to the palace, she was thinking of all the things she wanted to do for her date.

"He'll kill me for all the money, we'll spend on this date." Thought Momiji as she entered the palace. She looked around for the Orochi. After a half an hour of searching, she eventually found him training some of the new recruits. She smiled as she saw him working tenaciously on training the new soldiers as they struggled to keep pace with him. She watched as his eyes slightly twitched in irritation at a recruit performing subpar compared to the rest and she couldn't blame him. The stance was all wrong as the recruit's legs were all over the place, resulting in poorer performance. The Orochi, having enough of this, marched up to the recruit and showed/forced the recruit into the right position. After reprimanding the recruit for his mistakes, the Orochi continued with the lesson. Soon, after he was satisfied with their performance, the Orochi dismissed them and told them to come back later for another lesson. It was then that the Orochi spotted Momiji.

"What is it Momiji? Is something wrong?" Asked the Orochi, wondering why she was here and not at the bridge.

"Oh nothing. Except, you still owe me a date." Said Momiji. The Orochi looked confused for a moment, his brows knitting together as he went into thought, before his eyes widened. He completely forgot about it.

"I'm sorry, Momiji, I completely forgotten about that." Said the Orochi.

"It's alright. I forgot about it too. So, what do you say? Want to have it now?" Asked Momiji. The Orochi looked hesitant at answering.

"You know that I need to train these soldiers, right Momiji?" Said the Orochi. Momiji just snorted at the excuse.

"You can easily get someone else to cover you. Besides, the next training session isn't until two hours. Our date wouldn't last that long. I promise." Said Momiji, trying to convince the Orochi. He looked reluctant to leave but after some thought on the subject, he relented.

"Very well, but make sure that it'll only last an hour." Said the Orochi. Momiji smiled, satisfied that she got her way. "What do you want to do?" She then placed her pointer finger at his chest before placing her head near his ear. The Orochi could feel her breath as she whispered.

"Meet me near the entrance gate to the palace. You can show up in your armor if you want." Whispered Momiji before retracting her head back. She then left the Orochi to his thoughts. He sighed as he watched her retreating form go out of the training area and to lord knows where before going to his quarters for to prepare for his date. After washing up and grabbing a pouch full of money, he went to the location to where Momiji told him to go, wearing his armor. After some deliberation, he decided to dress in his armor instead of a kimono as he preferred to wear his armor in case some thugs decided to rob the two on their date. Just because there was a war going on, doesn't mean there won't be gangs of thugs and thieves preying on the weak and helpless. And it seemed that Momiji thought the same thing as he saw her with her own armor, minus her Naginata.

"So, decided to wear your armor for the date?" Asked Momiji.

"Yes, if only as a precaution to warn thieves and no-lives not to rob us. They wouldn't dare attack the Emperor's champion." Said the Orochi.

"True." Admitted Momiji. "But, it's now Empress's champion now since Ayu is now in charge." The Orochi gave a huff of amusement before taking Momiji's hand and escorted her around the city.

"Where will we go first?" Asked the Orochi, assuming that Momiji thought of a designation. He was correct when he heard her giggle.

"Don't worry, I got it all planned. Though you'll hate me for this." Said Momiji before dragging the Orochi to somewhere. As he was being dragged around, he got the feeling that he's going to spend a lot of money. And he was right in that assumption. Momiji dragged him to several stores, mostly clothing, forcing him to pay for whatever she purchased. He groaned after they went to another clothing store, the fifth one. He wondered why women will spend so much money on clothing. It always puzzled him to no end and he had a feeling that he wasn't the only one that thought about it. She was, however, careful on what to buy as she knew that they had limited money. After getting a blue kimono and placing it in a trunk she bought, she once again, dragged the Orochi around. But to his surprise, she didn't drag him to another store. Rather she was going somewhere far from the city and into the mountains.

"Momiji, where are we going?" Asked the Orochi, carrying all the stuff she bought.

"You'll see." Said Momiji. As they were getting higher and higher up the mountain, the Orochi was getting curious on what she wanted to show him. The object was soon revealed to be a small lake around a tree. The lake was currently glittering as the sun's rays reflected from the water. There was also a crane there, taking a drink from the water. All in all, it was a beautiful sight to see. After placing the purchased items somewhere safe, the two sat down near the lake and simply gazed at the sight before them.

"So, will you be pressed for cash after this?" Asked Momiji, attempting to start a conversation.

"No, I rarely ever buy anything aside from the essentials. Even with your shopping spree, I should be fine." Said the Orochi, gazing at the crane.

"Sorry about making you buy all this." Said Momiji, waving a hand on her purchased goods.

"It's alright. I needed to get rid of some of the money I had anyway." Said the Orochi, treating the whole shopping spree like it was nothing. "Why did you want to buy this stuff?" Momiji just shrugged.

"Just because." Said Momiji, simply, making the Orochi groan. "Relax, I won't have you do this again. Promise."

"I honestly doubt that." Said the Orochi, making Momiji laugh. The two sat in silence for a while until the Orochi spoke again.

"Why did you want to bring me here, anyway?" Asked the Orochi. Momiji was silent for a moment before scooting closer to the Orochi and placing her head on his shoulder.

"Well, I wanted to have at least one romantic moment with you on our date. So, I brought you here to have that. Plus, I wanted to know if you wanted to, you know, be my boyfriend." Said Momiji. "I mean, all we had was a single kiss and a few minutes of holding hands together. Plus, we never really became a couple. So, what do you want to be together?"

The Orochi stayed silent after she finished her explanation, wondering what to do. He didn't mind having a relationship with Momiji. In fact, he would love to have one with her. She was strong, caring, smart, fun-loving, and beautiful. Everything a guy would want in a woman. Plus, he always admired her as a person. The only problem was should he do it now. When there was a war going on. There was a chance that Momiji would be in danger and that he would have to choose between a mission or her. A chance that can happen with grave certainty. However, he remembered his father saying to him about never having any regrets when it comes to love. He said that after the Orochi's mother died during the thousand-year war. His father grieved and told him if he ever loved someone and that he had a choice between confessing to her during a war and not confessing to her during said war, that he should choose to confess to her because, if she dies, then he will regret never confessing to her for the rest of his life. After remembering those words from his father and looking at Momiji, seeing the worry and eagerness within her eyes, he made his decision.

Momiji widened her eyes, both in shock and happiness, when the Orochi grabbed her hand and squeezed it affectionately.

"I can't guarantee having a family with you Momiji, nor can I guarantee us having a good marriage between us, but what I can guarantee to you, is that I will try to be with you." Said the Orochi. Momiji smiled behind her mask before cupping his cheek with her free hand.

"That's all I ask from you." Said Momiji. The two looked at each other with loving eyes before taking off their face wear and sharing a passionate kiss with each other. The kiss lasted for a few seconds, but to them it lasted hours, before they stopped. They heard a noise and saw another crane arrive. The crane that was here originally approached the new crane and chirped at it. The two cranes rubbed their heads together before the two flew away. "Looks like someone else found love." Commented Momiji as they saw the cranes fly away.

"Indeed." Said the Orochi, his hand on top of Momiji's. The two then looked at each other before Momiji pounced on him.

"I don't suppose you want to stay here with me for awhile." Said Momiji seductively. The Orochi was dumbstruck for a moment before Momiji kissed him again. He was still stunned during the kiss before he recovered and kissed her back. He then remembered he was supposed to be back at the palace, training new soldiers. He then grunted before pulling Momiji closer, deepening the kiss. He supposed that someone can fill for him.

* * *

 **Few years later**

 **A village in the Myre**

* * *

In a village deep within the Myre, a little girl was running around near a house, fooling around. She was no more than five years old. Her hair was tied up in a bun, she had brown eyes, and wore a blue kimono. She was about to move away from the house when a voice stopped her.

"Aika! Come here!" Said a female voice from the house. The girl pouted before going back inside the house. Once she was inside, she was instantly hugged by the owner of the voice. This person was her mother, Momiji.

"Your just as energetic when I was your age, aren't you?" Commented Momiji. The girl simply made a dopy smile, making Momiji shake her head in amusement. "Your father is coming back home." At this, the girl perked up and looked excited. "Do you want to surprise him?" The girl then nodded rapidly, making Momiji laugh. "Then there's what we'll do." After a few minutes passed, the Orochi arrived from his business at the palace, eager to be with his wife and child. He was walking to the house when he heard Aika scream. Worried, he sprinted to the house. Upon seeing the door was wide open and hearing some crashes, the Orochi worry grew to despair, fearing the worst. He then sprinted inside the house, readying his katana, when he was tackled by someone. He was about to shove the person off when he noticed it was Momiji and Aika. He then sighed, knowing what was going on.

"Must you two worry me so much." Complained the Orochi, the two females laughing at him for falling for their trick. "You both are going to be the death of me one day." Momiji just laughed at this before hugging him.

"Sorry, but it's been so long that we had to do something special." Said Momiji before pulling down his menpo and kissing him. As soon as that happened, all his worries went away and he returned the kiss. Aika then hugged both him and Momiji, giggling. After the three were done with their little reunion, the three proceeded to the house, intending to fix the mess Momiji and Aika had done to fool the Orochi. After they cleaned up the mess, the three had a wonderful dinner and spent a great time with each other.


End file.
